


Raindrops in the Ocean

by MyUncreativeUserSorry



Category: Keeper of the Lost Cities Series - Shannon Messenger
Genre: Based off of art by catching.lighting_ on insta, Canon Compliant, Fan Art, Fluff, Getting Together, Kam - Freeform, Love Confessions, M/M, Overuse of Rain and Glitter, Pranks, pure fluff, technically
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-07
Updated: 2020-06-07
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:01:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,025
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24580480
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MyUncreativeUserSorry/pseuds/MyUncreativeUserSorry
Summary: I saw this adorable art by @/catching.lighting_ on instagram and I just had to write something.There's something magical about a rainy day.
Relationships: Keefe Sencen/Tam Song
Comments: 3
Kudos: 43





	Raindrops in the Ocean

Of all the surprising things that Tam has walked in on, this is certainly a new one.

"Nobody told me this was a party." Linh remarks from beside him, their friends offer the two of them various glares as a response. Dex is the only one who seems amused, likely because he's relatively unscathed.

No one else seems quite as lucky, the room looks as though a bomb has gone off, a very glittery bomb. It's nearly impossible to tell who's who, because everyone looks like a sparkly monster. Streamers are hung randomly on them, as well as being thrown sporadically around the room.

Tam can't remember the last time Sophie brought Iggy to hang out with them before, but he's here now, swinging around on streamers. Then he catches sight of another imp across the room, and another, and another. He can’t help the slight smile that breaks through his sigh.

“Keefe?” Is all he says as Linh takes off to try and coax one of the imps down.

“Obviously.” The glitter monster that sounds like Sophie grumps, looking as though she’s trying to shake out her cape. It’s a futile effort, only serving to send another cloud of glitter billowing through the room. “He set the glitter bomb to explode then just took off.”

“Coward.” Fitz agrees.

“He didn’t go outside, did he?” Linh questions with concern, having successfully calmed one imp who now perches on her shoulder.

Their sparkly friends seem to be trying to remember.

“I passed him on my way back from the kitchen, I think he went out the side door.” Dex pipes up, and Tam finally notices the plate of Mallowmelt in his hands. Juline always makes a batch for when they come over, at least that explains how Dex escaped the carnage.

Tam groans, looking out the window, “Idiot.”

Though the glass, they can all see fat raindrops that pelt the ground.

“Serves him right.” Biana grumbles, he blinks in surprise because instead of Biana it’s just a patchy humanoid form made of glitter. The girl herself has vanished, likely to better see the glitter. She’s faring better then the others, Sophie somehow keeps managing to get more sparkly each time he looks, and Fitz has given up on cleaning entirely and begun chasing Dex around the room trying to get a ‘hug’. 

“You know what?” Tam announces, “I refuse to be surrounded by this any longer.” He decides as a particularly brave imp yanks at his hair while swinging past on a streamer. It’s only half of a lie, because that coupled with the glitter cloud and the frankly offensive sparkliness of everyone in the room (Even Dex and Linh were now glittery, courtesy of Fitz and the imps respectively.) It just all hurts his brain.

His friends aren't stupid, regardless of what he likes to think, and they see right through his fib when he bends to pick up Keefe's messily discarded cloak.

"Oh come on!" Marella groans, but it's no disguise for the teasing lilt to her voice.

"Clean yourselves up." He says, deftly stepping around the honestly impressive mess. He ignores the booing and the good natured heckling that follows him out of the room (even if taunts are perfectly true, he doesn't want to give them the satisfaction.)

It doesn't take him long to find the correct exit, but locating Keefe isn’t as quick. Raindrops dance on the fabric of his cloak as soon as he steps outside, and he stuffs Keefe's cloak under his own to save it from getting drenched. 

Tam finally spots him a ways away from the house, standing on an observation deck overlooking the ocean.

"You couldn't have waited for me?" The wind carries his expression of faux sadness.

"Believe me I wanted to." Keefe turns away from the rolling waves to meet Tam's eyes, his hair already dampened. Rain has painted an abstract pattern on his tunic. "Council knows you could use some glitter."

"It would match my sparkling personality." Tam deadpans, drawing a laugh from the blond. His shoes tap alongside the rain as Tam steps onto the wooden deck towards his friend.

"The imps started biting so I had to set it off early." Keefe explains when Tam comes up beside him, rolling up his sleeve to display a mess of tiny teeth marks.

"You were hiding them in your shirt?" He raises an unimpressed eyebrow, Keefe shrugs. "That can't be humane."

“Your face is inhumane.” Keefe retorts, sticking out his tongue. Tam replies by tossing the bundled up cloak at his face, the other boy unfairly manages to catch it just before it hits him in the face.

“And here I thought you didn’t care about me.” He remarks, tying it around his neck and flipping up the hood. At this point it’s more of a formality then protection, because Keefe is soaked.

“I care about my sanity.” Tam corrects, “No one wants to hear you whine when you catch a cold.” While he speaks, he takes a second to hop up onto the railing beside Keefe. The taller of the two opts to remain half standing, leaning back against the rail.

“I don’t recommend going back inside any time soon.” Tam muses after a moment of silence. “Kesler and Juline are going to ban you for life. Glitter never comes out, ya know.” He looks over to find Keefe entirely unbothered.

“Nah, they gave me their blessing.” He shrugs, “Plus, everyone should be grateful that I didn’t go to Glitterbutt for supplies.” Keefe adds with a wink.

Tam wrinkles his nose involuntarily at the image that brings.

“You’re disgusting.” He shoves Keefe lightly, who laughs off the half hearted insult.

Time sails by slowly and they lapse into a comfortable silence. Tam turns away from the distraction at his side and instead focuses on the ocean. The dark clouds reflect into an inky blackness that stretches as far as he can see. It’s times like these, when the water is deep and black like liquid shadow, instead of bright and blue that Tams fingers twitch. For a single breath he imagines moving it like Linh does, a moldable wave of watery shade.

He rubs his palm along the wood unconsciously, as though the movement will pull the ocean towards him. His hand is brought to a stop when it bumps against Keefe’s, propped just outside the safety of his cloak. Keefe reacts by silently hooking his pinkie over Tams.

It’s one of those many, many small gestures of his that Tam has picked up on, small and subtle but enough that he’s become certain, Keefe craves touch. He’s almost desperate for it. Not quite hugs or cuddles, none of their group are particularly cuddly, but the amount of times that he stands with his arm hooked around the shoulders of whomever's closest are innumerable. It’s practically his resting stance.

Yet sometimes he does more delicate things that Tam took forever to notice, despite their frequency. The way he’ll play with the baby hairs on the back of Tams neck when they’re sat beside each other, or how he’ll rest his chin on Tams head when he comes up behind him (that one is undoubtedly the most annoying, but far be it from Tam to put an end to it.) Out of all these little touches, touches that rarely linger for longer than a few seconds, Tam has yet to acknowledge a single one. He tries his best to not even think about them, because that opens a door to a line of thought he doesn’t want to entertain.

As if on cue, Keefe's pinkie slides off his own and the touch vanishes.

“Isn’t it nice?” Keefe's low hum drags him from his scattered rumination.

“What, pranking our friends?” Tam clarifies, in all honesty he wouldn’t know if it was nice or not. He’s never actually participated in the planning or execution of a prank. Though his friends think otherwise, seeing as he’s taken credit for all of Linhs. Because it’s simply hilarious to watch them bear the byproducts of his sister's mastermind, all the while thinking she’s too innocent to participate in such an act.

“No, idiot. The rain, isn’t it nice?” Keefe reiterates.

It’s really not though, the cloak Tam wears is far from water proof and he can already feel rainwater seeping down his spine, chilling him all the way through. He says yes in spite of himself, because how could he not.

“It’s like the sky is falling.”

And Tam can’t even begin to fathom how that’s considered a comfort, but the empath's face is serene. There isn’t even a whisper of the impish glee from only minutes previous, just peace, and happiness, and rain.

“It’s like the clouds are sweating.” Tam tacks on, the words completely bypassing his filter, as they’re prone to do when faced with a soft and smiling Keefe Sencen.

Keefe barks a laugh, short and surprised and for a short moment the rain doesn’t feel quite as cold.

“Now who’s gross.” He fixes Tam with a smirk.

“Watering us?” He tries again after a moment of thought,

“So we’re plants now?” Keefe asks, and his shift from smirk to smile has Tams treacherous brain focusing on that rather than real, rational thought.

“I can be a flower if I want to be.” Tam huffs, only half aware of how ridiculous he sounds.

Keefe throws his head back and very nearly cackles which doesn’t have any right being half as attractive as it is.

“You’re ridiculous.” He lets his head hang there, face upturned towards the cloud-darkened sky. His eyelashes flutter against the raindrops before finally falling closed, his bright smile softens but doesn’t dim from it’s blinding light.

It’s the perfect moment, without the threat of prying, teasing eyes. With Keefe’s eyes closed and blissfully unaware, Tam lets himself have a rare instance of unguarded thought. He watches the raindrops make their way down the pale curve of his jaw, soaks in that unfiltered smile that Tam wishes he knew how to bring about more often. The way some strands of his hair will curl in the damp air, especially the bits around his ears which ducktail on their own accord. The odd droplet catches on his eyelashes, dark and unfairly long eyelashes, and Tam will have to restrain himself from wiping it away.

For now he doesn’t fight to hide the lovestruck curl of his lips, he doesn’t force away the desire to hold and to be held, to protect and to be protected. For just a minute he allows himself to feel with all that he is. To see him for all that he is.

Time is fleeting, and it feels like only seconds have passed when Keefe’s smile falters, breaking Tams trance. The raven haired boy quickly swallows down his overwhelming emotion with a well-practiced determination, once again hiding behind a near-frown.

“Tam…” Keefe says, slowly, cautiously, his eyes still don’t open but Tam feels something shift against his hand. He looks down and finds that his pinkie is still pressed up against Keefes.

His hand flies up as if burned, in a blink the other boy’s eyes are open and his fingers encircle Tams wrist.

Tam does everything in his power to quell his rising panic. It’ll be easier to deny it if he doesn’t practically emblazon ‘liar’ on his forehead.

“It feels the same.” Keefe breathes, his eyes not on Tam but on something just beyond. His voice is a strange mix of confusion and disbelief. It’s only by the smallest margin that Tam manages to not tear his hand free, stalled by his own self-sacrificing curiosity.

The Keefe’s lips twist into a frown and whatever spell that holds him in place dies. Tam lunges back, only barely able to catch himself upright as he basically throws himself off the railing. At least his wrist is free.

“Wait-” 

“Don’t!” Tam cuts him off, “Just don’t bother. Let’s pretend this never happened.” He asserts, not comfortable with how close he’s coming to confirming suspicions he knows Keefe has. His legs are obstinately refusing his request to carry him far, far away.

“I like you!” Keefe blurts, and Tam stops trying to move. “I like you too, at least I think it’s too. It feels like too.” He scrambles, pushing off the wood.

The shade is shocked still. His mind reels on impact as he tries to come to terms with the words that filter through his ears. Perhaps it’s another prank, revenge for Tam escaping the first one. A stupid, cruel prank of the sort he’d thought Keefe had long grown out of.

It has to be a prank. One that’ll hurt for months, that he’ll have to pretend to laugh about, because there’s no way Keefe feels the same, is there? They’re only just barely friends, and even that’s a relatively recent development. He doesn’t truly think that Keefe is mean enough to pull something like this but it’s the only explanation.

In his surprise, Tam doesn’t flinch away when Keefe wraps a hand around each of his wrists. Though he wishes he had, because he knows he’s entirely screwed now, there’s no way that he can’t feel the hope and terror that war within Tam’s heart, and there's no way this can be passed off as a joke anymore.

“I don’t-” Tam attempts feebly, but Keefe’s grip around his wrists strengthens, and he’s pulled a step closer.

“You can tell me if I’m wrong, but I’m not lying.” Even though anxiety fills his tone, Tam can hear the conviction inside of it. The truth that makes his brain spin, he just can’t make sense of it. There’s no joke, not hidden in his voice or his face or his eyes. Just truth and hope. 

“I like you, a lot. For a while now.” Tam only stares up at him, still searching his face for any sign of a lie. Instead he finds only his own emotions reflected back at him.

“You’re not wrong.” Tam allows, it’s the softest of whispers and yet the words still echo between them.

Keefe blinks, “Wait. Really? You’re serious?” 

Tam shakes his hands between them, fighting the small doubt that floats up. “You’re the emotions guy, you tell me.” He says with more certainty then he feels.

“I know, I just-” he sighs, “I wasn’t sure. Emotions are hard.” 

“Well, I’m serious. You’re right, I’m hopeless for you.” Tam admits, tapering off. He’s surprised the words even managed to slip through his lips at all, his brain had fought them the entire way and yet here they are now, in the open.

"Hopeless, eh?" Keefe grins, his icy bright eyes are almost unbearably soft and it’s so unlike any other expression Tam has ever witnessed directed at him. He can’t even begin to come up with a proper reaction.

"Shut up." Is his eventual reply, and he turns his head away in a halfhearted attempt to spare himself any further embarrassment.

"Hey, it's okay. More than okay, I'm head over heels for you too." There's a catch in his voice, a testament to his own nervousness. Tam is too busy short circuiting to really think about it, because Keefe really does like him back. Likes Tam as Tam likes him.

For a second there's only the sound of rain, then Tam feels a feather light press of lips on his cheek and his heart tap dances in his chest.

He turns to find Keefe watching him with his face an endearing red. Raindrops tickle his nose and he feels happy, so happy. His face almost hurts from how much he's smiling.

Neither of them speak at first, too overwhelmed. Tam finally lets the swelling joy in his chest take over.

"So does this mean..." He twists his hands up to properly interlock their fingers, knowing full well that Keefe can feel the spike in his emotions. "Do you wanna be-"

"Boyfriends?" Keefe finishes, and he's watching Tam as though it's the first time he's seeing him. Only it’s so much better because the distrust and anger from their true first meeting is absent, in its place is a bewildered awe.

Tam nods, not quite trusting his voice. Keefe nods too, with an enthusiasm Tam doesn't have to pretend he's annoyed by any longer.

"Yeah, I'd like that."

Tam couldn't stop himself from smiling even wider if he tried. Buoyed by elation and absurd bravery, he stands on his toes and plants a mirroring kiss to Keefe's cheek. It's soft and nervous, but worth it to see a new shade of red in Keefe's face. It's worth it to see his lips turn up into a dopey grin.

"If you two are done canoodling," Biana's voice rings out, nearly causing Tam to leap away. "We have some work to do- OW!" 

Tam can vaguely hear Sophie hiss something at her and Biana's defensive retort. He doesn't need to look to know that their friends are watching from the safety of the indoors. For how long? He doesn’t want to know.

"Ignore her!" Dex calls, there’s a muffled noise that sounds like Biana except with a hand pressed over her mouth. "Take all the time you need." Various snickers can be heard over the rain, "We'll just-" The sounds die out, likely (hopefully) because the group hurries away, leaving the two of them alone once more. Keefe's head drops to rest lightly against Tam's forehead, warmth unfurls inside him from that point of contact and he sighs contentedly.

"We'll get sick if we stay out here much longer." Keefe murmurs, his breath ghosting across Tam's cheek.

"Probably." Tam agrees, letting go of Keefe's, his boyfriend's, hands.

Instead of walking away he loops his arms around the other boy's waist. Keefe lets out a small sound of surprise before bringing up his own arms and draping them over Tam's shoulders.

As they stand there, with rain lazily tracing the lines of their faces and soaking through their cloaks, Tam thinks he can finally see its appeal.

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! Hope you all enjoyed! It took me 40 minutes to get the image working I feel old. Lemme know what you think. Be sure to check out @/catching.lightning_ because her art is incredible. Also, feel free to come say hi and chat with me on tumblr! https://www.tumblr.com/blog/everyonehasthoughts


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